It's 2025. Why are Americans unable to utilize a straightforward roundabout?

      Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images

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      I have a penchant for infrastructure. As a car lover, it seems to come with the territory. After all, what’s the point of having a fast car without quality roads to drive on? There’s an undeniable connection between the two topics, and they often intersect (pardon the pun) most dramatically when discussing traffic accidents. Have you ever had a social media post removed for being harsh about an intersection? I have. That’s how I discovered that could happen. Choose your battles wisely, everyone; you only get one chance to fight them.

      That same platform is also where I became aware of an annual report detailing the most dangerous intersections in Michigan, which I now eagerly anticipate every year (Seriously, guys, what took so long?). It’s a straightforward listicle created by Michigan Auto Law, a network of local law firms specializing in (you guessed it) auto accidents. While it primarily aims to generate business, the information comes directly from the Michigan State Police’s accident database, and their methodology is clearly outlined, so I won’t repeat it here. If anything, I might point you to ClickOnDetroit, whose dry repetition of “This is a roundabout” struck me as (unintentionally, I’m sure) amusing.

      Here’s the gist: of the 20 intersections with the highest total collisions, five are roundabouts. They occupy three of the top ten spots—ranking #2, #3, and #6—in a state where roundabouts make up a small percentage of intersections. Keep in mind, the latest list is based on 2024 data, so any redesigns from this year won’t be included.

      Google

      The first roundabout mentioned on the list deserves the bad reputation, in my opinion. It’s the roundabout at 18 1/2 Mile Road at the start of the Van Dyke Freeway in Macomb County. Even without the statistics, I’m pretty sure I understand where the traffic issues arise. The southeast section of this roundabout is a complete mess. Traffic heading west must cross over vehicles exiting the freeway to access the eastbound onramp, causing the same bottlenecks typically seen in cloverleaf interchange weave lanes. Add in north- and southbound through traffic along with the roundabout design, and you’ve got a classic recipe for chaos. I’m sure this is an improvement over whatever was there before, but I wouldn’t call it efficient at all.

      However, the second entry on the list is where I completely lose faith in humanity.

      Google

      This is Pontiac Trail at Martin Parkway, just a few miles from me. It essentially signifies the northern boundary of M-5 as a divided freeway. I frequently navigate this roundabout and have never experienced a delay due to an accident (nor have I felt I was at risk of one). The “turbo” style slip lanes for traffic headed south on M-5 and east on Pontiac Trail are separated from conflicting traffic. Some lanes can serve as both through and exit routes, which potentially increases the likelihood of drivers cutting across another vehicle’s path, but other than that, it’s nothing particularly noteworthy. Yet, somehow, this is the state’s third-most dangerous intersection, averaging one crash every two and a half days.

      Moving down the list, the intersection of 14 Mile and Orchard Lake Roads in Farmington Hills appears more chaotic in a satellite image than in reality, followed by our first mention outside the immediate Detroit metro area: West Ellsworth and State in Ann Arbor. This roundabout is almost absurdly straightforward. MDOT has installed so many curbs that it’s nearly impossible to wind up in the wrong lane.

      The situation at Lee Road and US-23 near Brighton looks confusing from above, but is quite common in that region. The engineers attempted to fit an overpass, service drive connection, and highway interchange into a space that could ideally only accommodate one of those elements. The “barbell” style double-roundabout interchange has become a favored solution along this freeway, and while adding a third roundabout makes for an awkward configuration, this isn’t an unusual variation for that area. The fact that traffic on the eastern side is entering and exiting a busy shopping center likely complicates things further, but it doesn’t significantly increase the intersection’s complexity.

      Google

      Since the #1 most dangerous intersection isn’t a roundabout, I felt it deserved its own special mention. That distinction goes to… whatever this is in Warren/Center Line. This interchange services I-696, Van Dyke Ave (miles south of where it becomes a freeway), and 11 Mile Road, which runs parallel to (and flanks) the interstate, functioning as a service drive. It also indirectly connects to Mound Road (a freeway